Rotary Club of Summerside Annual Book Sale

The Rotary Club of Summerside is preparing for its Annual Book Drive for Literacy

(Photo credit: Ancelene MacKinnon/Journal Pioneer)

Rotarian Dr. Scott Mollins leafing through a selection of books from last year's Book Drive.

The Summerside Rotary Club – in affiliation with the Journal Pioneer – is gearing up for its annual Book Drive for Literacy.

The book sale is happening this weekend, Oct 22-24, at the Marine Terminal Building 162 Heather Moyse Drive.

The collection of books, which happened this past weekend, is a massive undertaking. Anna MacDonald, who is coordinating the book drive for a third consecutive year, estimated between 10,000 and 15,000 books are accepted each year.

The money raised from this week’s sale will support various local literacy programs. The Rotary Club of Summerside, in previous years, has used the funds to sponsor the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, in coordination with the Mi’kmaq Confederacy of PEI; has purchased dictionaries for local elementary school students, as well as purchased classroom story books for Western Prince county elementary schools.

“When you think, you can pay $21 for a book and you can walk away with it for $3.00, that’s a good bargain.”

Journal Pioneer staff, Summerside Rotarians, as well as local volunteers collected the books and have sorted them into the numerous, appropriate categories.

“We have tons of cook books; we have tons of medical books; things like hobbies. There are lots of children’s books that come in and, again, all kinds of fiction books - just about every author that I have ever heard of - going through there.”

MacDonald said, “Literally, if they can bring (books in) and then come back and restock their shelves with new books - at a great price, I might add - that’s where the benefit is, to them and to the literacy programs.”

Even with books selling for one, two, and three dollars, there is such a large quantity, that it is a great source of funds for literacy programs in support of children and adults.